nuclear spin

Researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia have created the first quantum bit (qubit) based on the nuclear spin of an atom, within a silicon transistor. This breakthrough is significant for two reasons: The qubit produced by the researchers is highly stable — and it’s in silicon, meaning it can be wired up and controlled electronically, just like a conventional computer chip.

Our familiar concept of temperature works pretty well for most solids, liquids, and gases — it conforms to the general expectation that it should always be greater than absolute zero. What are we to make of a recent claim by a group of German researchers that they have created an experimental system where negative temperatures can be observed and measured?

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